


Good Night's Sleep

by MortisBane



Category: Star Wars: Thrawn Series - Timothy Zahn (2017)
Genre: Blunt Thrawn, Fidgety sleeper Eli, Fluff, Friends to Roommates to Lovers, Literal Sleeping Together, M/M, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-07
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:07:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27437803
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MortisBane/pseuds/MortisBane
Summary: Eli went his whole life not sharing a room or a bed with anyone, and as a result, he's become a fidgety sleeper. Now with Thrawn in his life, Eli's going to need face coexisting while sharing a bed with someone else.
Relationships: Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo/Eli Vanto
Comments: 13
Kudos: 89





	Good Night's Sleep

One of the perks of being an only child, at least for Eli, was that he never had to share a bed. And let it be known, Eli believed himself to be an awful bed mate. 

He tossed and turned in his sleep constantly. Sometimes he'd fall asleep on his back, and wake up tangled and upside down on the other end of the bed, his pillows kicked every which way. Other times he’d roll and roll until he was cocooned inside his blankets, so no doubt he'd be a blanket hog.

He had no experience having to share a bed before, and for the first twenty or so years of his life that was fine. It only started to become a problem when Eli met his first ever roommate.

At the Myomar Academy the enlistees were so few that most cadets weren't assigned a roommate, Eli being one of those lucky ones. But when Thrawn charged head first into his life and flipped it upside down, that luck vanished out the airlock. And in a swift motion he was transferred to Royal Imperial and this strange Chiss legend was his first roommate.

If he wasn't so angry about the shift in his life, he would have been more nervous about the first time he'd have to share sleeping quarters with someone.

He had vanished into the refresher to get changed for bed that night, and idled a minute or two longer to make sure Thrawn was fully clothed as well before slinking out. Thankfully the Chiss was clothed, so that was one awkward encounter avoided. He climbed up to the top bunk, wished his good nights and hoped for the best.

Come morning, as he dreaded, Thrawn filled him in on everything he did in his sleep.

"You are a restless sleeper." Thrawn said just after Eli had pulled himself out of bed.

Hair a mess, eyes crusty, and the look of death written across his face, Eli replied, "I know." He tried escaping to the fresher to clean up and avoid any more talk, but Thrawn was prepared as soon as he came back.

"It took you less than ten minutes to fall asleep, and yet you spent the rest of the night moving around in your sleep." Thrawn was sat in a chair beside their shared computer terminal, messing idly with a datapad.

Eli paused, the biting response dying on his tongue. "Did I keep you up?" He asked. He knew that it might be annoying for someone to sleep near him, but if he actually kept Thrawn awake with his tossing around, then he'd have a real reason to feel guilty. Despite all the things Thrawn had done to him.

"Not at all. I simply need less sleep than you do. I slept only four hours, but you were moving before I slept and after I awoke. It is safe to assume you moved the entire time.”

"Oh, um yeah I know I toss n' turn." Eli ducked away from Thrawn's gaze, pulling his cadet uniform on over his underclothes, trying to hide the frustrated blush across his cheeks. "Sorry if it annoys you, I don't know how to stop it."

"I am not bothered by this." Thrawn reassured, standing up and stepping around to be in Eli's peripheral. "Simply curious about the sleeping habits of Humans.

"Well I'm not normal, most people don't move nearly as much as I do." He finished putting on his uniform and tried running his fingers through his hair to get it to stay in some sort of ordered manner.

"Why is it that you are different?"

"I-I don't know! Would you stop asking so many questions about how I sleep?" He shot a glare at Thrawn, just for the Chiss to stare back blankly, completely unaffected. Couldn’t he at least pretend Eli could be intimidating.

"Apologies. I wanted to see if there could be a remedy to your restless sleeping, perhaps then you would wake more restful."

And at that, Eli had to pause yet again. That was actually a very thoughtful thing to say. After all the Hell this man had dragged Eli through, and the three months of Hell that laid before them, Thrawn wanted to help him. Even if it was in a small way.

"It's not that big of a deal. I've slept this way all my life. Just...let me know if it starts to bother you."

"Very well."

And that was that. They coexisted the next three month just fine. Thrawn never mentioned Eli's sleeping habits again -nor did he claim that Eli snored during that time, so he’d consider that a win- and Eli finally was able to relax that he was a decent, albeit weird, roommate.

The actual matter of bed mate didn't come up for another few years. And yet again, of course, involved Thrawn.

Not long after the Umbra incident, after a late night of scouring the holonet for clues about Nightswan and sipping idly on some Corellian whiskey, conversation turned a bit more personal.

In true Thrawn fashion, he broke the ice with one of his stupidly blunt observations.

"You have romantic feelings for me." He had said, without any hints in his voice behind his reason for doing so, he had barely even turned to Eli before hitting him with that statement.

All Eli could do was sit there, mouth opening and closing like a dying fish. The worst part was that Thrawn was completely right, and Eli had no method of escape.

"I-I…" he began to stammer, "I maybe do...yes…" Thrawn watched him carefully, and in agonizing silence before the smallest of smiles tugged at his lips.

"I have been reviewing policies on fraternization between Imperials, and have found no such restrictions barring us from seeking out a mutual relationship, if you are interested."

If Thrawn speak wasn't so damn charming, Eli might have bashed his head into the nearest wall with that declaration.

"Are you saying you reciprocate?" This was the least romantic conversation Eli had ever had, but it was so unapologetically Thrawn that he couldn't imagine this going any other way.

"Of course. You are an intelligent, caring man, whom I both trust and find very physically appealing."

"Stars you frustrate and flatter me." Eli groaned burying his head in his hands, cheek burning hotly.

"Is that a yes?" Thrawn's voice had that little lift at the end, the kind that usually implied he found something humorous. Bastard.

"Of course it is." And Eli dared to cross the distance between them. The best way to stop Thrawn from talking like himself, was to cover his mouth with Eli's own. As he just discovered.

His once roommate, turned friend and superior officer, became his boyfriend. And that opened the untouched Pandora's box of how Eli would fare as a bed mate.

If he tossed around and kicked in his sleep alone, he could only imagine the problems and issues he could cause for Thrawn. Regardless if the Chiss only needed only four hours of sleep -or so he claimed- Eli's sleeping habits would impede on those few hours.

For the time being, he'd just have to avoid staying the night in Thrawn's quarters. Which wasn't too difficult, when his own quarters were just down the hall, excuses to stay weren’t very sparse.

Unfortunately, as all things were with Thrawn, Eli's plans never worked out in the end.

"You are avoiding staying." Thrawn said one night when Eli had just tried to excuse himself back to his own quarters. Caught red handed, and he knew better than to try and argue a Thrawn observation.

"Um, yeah. I'm just worried that we may be moving too fast," Eli defended.

"You look away and to the right while tugging at your tunic hem when you lie to me," Thrawn countered, and Eli was thoroughly trapped.

"I'm sorry." He conceded with a sigh, returning to the couch and sinking into the plush material. "I'm just worried that if we share a bed, I'm gonna kick and move about so much that it keeps you up all night." He rung his fingers together, not bothering to meet Thrawn's intense gaze.

"That is all?" Eli whipped his head around to glare at the Chiss.

"Yes that's all. It's embarrassing okay, and I don't completely believe that you only need four hours of sleep a night. I don't want to disturb your sleep."

From his end of the couch, Thrawn came closer, taking Eli's hand gently into both of his. "My sleep is much less restful when I don't have you beside me."

"You've learned a thing or two about being romantic." Eli teased, unable to deny that Thrawn's words did work on him.

"Stay the night with me." Thrawn whispered, leaning in to leave a soft kiss to his cheek. "Please." The plea ghosting across his ear like a prayer.

"Okay..." Really, how could he say no.

So after retrieving his night clothes and a change for the next day, Eli returned and prepared for bed alongside Thrawn. And, he had to admit, it was nice to just domestically go about their nightly routine. Being able to graze hands, lean against one another, just basking in the others presence was relaxing. But all his anxieties came right back when he stood before Thrawn bed.

On the outside it was a simple bed, just wide enough for two people, one of the luxuries that the rank of captain bought a person. The sheets were made up neatly and to regulation, nothing out of the ordinary. But there was a looming sense of dread emanating from the mattress, of his soon to come failures as a boyfriend.

But Thrawn came up behind him, wrapping his strong arms around his waist, his chin resting against Eli's shoulder. Enveloped by Thrawn, he could forget some of his worries for a moment. The Chiss gave his neck a gentle peck before unwinding from him and taking his hand.

The moment of truth.

Thrawn settled in first, getting under the covers and lifting them up for Eli to slip in beside him. He took a moment to take a deep breath before submitting to his fate. Maybe if he just stayed up most of the night, then he wouldn't toss around.

He scooted close to Thrawn, feeling the warmth of his body. He leaned his head into his shoulder and Thrawn's arms came around him, pulling him tightly into an embrace.

"Thank you for staying." Thrawn said, burying his nose into Eli's hair.

"I suppose it was only a matter of time before I did. Don't say I didn't warn you." Eli playfully chastised, gladly nuzzling into Thrawn's neck.

"I love you."

"I love you too. Goodnight." Thrawn switched off the light, plunging them into darkness.

One thing Eli hadn't planned on, was exactly how comfortable it was to be held in Thrawn's arms. The warmth, the security, the faint heartbeat under Eli's ears, were all so calming and relaxing. Before long, he was memorized by it, forgetting his vow to stay up all together as his heavy eyelids drooped.

Come morning Eli was roused by the slow lighting increase of morning shift. He still felt so warm and comfortable, he wanted nothing more than to bury his face back into Thrawn's neck like he had just before falling asleep and-

Wait.

Back into Thrawn's neck? Opening his eyes, Eli took in the scene around him. It was...exactly the same as when he'd gone to sleep. On his right side, cuddled up to Thrawn, the Chiss' arms tightly around him, his head resting on Thrawn's shoulder. The blanket was still covering him, the pillows were still in place, Eli hadn't shifted at all in his sleep. And on top of that, he couldn't remember the last time he woke up feeling so well rested.

He glanced up to see Thrawn tapping away at his datapad. Once the other man noticed his gaze, he powered the device off and set it aside, turning a loving smile down on him.

"Good morning," he said.

"Morning," Eli answered, still mildly confused. "Did I move around last night."

"Not at all." Thrawn's hand cupped Eli's cheek, stroking at it gently with his thumb. "You slept very soundly through the entire night."

"I've never done that." He gaped up at the man. "Never have I stayed still all night!" He pushed himself up slightly, gazing down at Thrawn. "Are you lying to me?"

"I wouldn't."

Eli stayed there, staring down at his boyfriend, processing. He slept the whole night without tossing and turning, kicking, moving, destroying the bed or harming Thrawn. He spent the whole night held firmly in Thrawn's arms, and as a result, got more worthwhile sleep than he's ever had in all his life.

"You did this."

"I assure you, it was not intentional."

"I don't care. I love you." Eli swooped down, capturing Thrawn's lips with his own, morning breath and all. Because for the first time in his life, he could sleep well, and this meant he had many good night's of sleep ahead of him.

**Author's Note:**

> Howdy y'all, just something short and soft I started last night because I wanted fluffy Thranto cuddles. hope you enjoyed, Kudos' and Comments much apreciated!
> 
> Stay Wizard  
> ~[Mortis](https://mortisbane.tumblr.com/)


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